Elwin Hawthorne (British 1905-1954) Lambeth Bridge Oil on board Signed lower right; signed and titled verso 25 x 35cm (9¾ x 13¾ in.) Exhibited: London, Alex. Reid & Lefevre Ltd., Elwin Hawthorne, March 1934, . 9 Southampton, Southampton City Art Gallery, From Mile End to Mayfair, September 2017-January 2018 The present work was exhibited at Hawthorne's first solo show at Alex. Reid & Lefevre in 1934. Hawthorne was born in Poplar and took art courses at the Bethnal Green Men's Institute and Bow and Bromley Evening Institute. The group that emerged from these clubs went on to be kwn collectively as the East London Group and they worked and exhibited together from 1928 until 1936, with the first prominent show at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in 1928. Most, like Hawthorne, were from a working class background with little formal art education. However, they caught the attention of press and critics of the day, exhibiting alongside prominent artists such as Phyllis Bray and Walter Sickert. After the 1928 exhibition, Hawthorne worked as Sickert's assistant for three years and his influence can be seen in Hawthorne's work.